Introduction

True love is the central theme of the teachings of the Reverend Sun
Myung Moon. It is also the driving force of his life. But the one
thing it is not, is his exclusive possession. True love is the
birthright of all men and women. It is the essential empowerment of
our existence. Thus Reverend Moon's words on true love have universal
and eternal value. And their purpose is to awaken us to that which we
already possess, and to teach us how to substantiate it within
ourselves and our world.

This is why his message is received with equal enthusiasm in every
corner of the world, no matter what culture, race or religious tradi-
tion. True love transcends all limitations. It is the reality
underlying human life in all its manifestations. Therefore, true love
is the key to world peace and harmony.

More than that, true love is the source of joy and happiness. At this
juncture of history we find that many perennial difficulties are being
resolved, such as the conflict between communism and democracy, or the
barriers of time and space in global relations. However, the problem
of how to find happiness has not been solved. And it is the advanced
societies, living in peace and prosperity, which demonstrate most
abjectly the failure of the human race to discover the source of true
joy in life.

Some preach that joy comes solely from faith in God. But no religion
has adequately combined the desire for spiritual joy with the desire
for physical joy. Religions bring people to some spiritual euphoria,
but this is always brief and partial, because the realities of
physical existence cannot be ignored. No religion has completely
succeeded in combining perfect devotion to God with complete physical
fulfillment.

Others teach that technology will bring happiness. But ease of life
will provide nothing more than sensual pleasure, which finally

Clearly, the spiritual and physical desires must be harmonized through
a higher principle. That principle is true love. The environment for
the complete manifestation of true love is the family. This truth is
not Reverend Moon's invention; it is God's original principle of
creation. It will never change.

True love is also the element common to all the great and various
religions of mankind. The great religious founders all spoke with the
power of true love, articulated to specific historical cultures. Now
is the age of worldwide culture, of the global village. God's
messenger to this age, to people and nations of all religions, is the
Reverend Sun Myung Moon.

Reverend Moon is of course a Korean. Korea was considered until
recently the "hermit kingdom," isolated from the mainstreams of
history. On a small peninsula live a people strongly independent, who
have carried on a dynastic tradition unbroken for over 4,000 years.
Within this culture, various religious traditions have coexisted,
chiefly shamanism, Taoism, Buddhism, Confucianism, and today
Christianity and Islam.

Undergirding and harmonizing these formal religious traditions has
been and is still a powerful family and clan life. Koreans hold family
and clan relationships as the most important element constitutive of
the good life. Koreans historically also have a strong sense of the
reality of the spirit world, and consider the honor and care for
departed ancestors to be as important as that for each other in the
physical plane.

Why would God choose a man from this out of the way, seemingly
insignificant nation, to give His message at the end of the second
millennium after Christ? From my point of view, the reason has to do
with both the Korean family traditions and the Korean resiliency. This
resiliency, patience and absolute determination is borne of the
experience of countless invasions of Korea by great foreign powers.
Korea repulsed an average of one invasion every generation for the
last 4,000 years, but never once invaded another country. The endu-
rance of such suffering created a race with awesome tenacity, indom-
itable will, deep dignity and sense of personal identity, and a great
ability to enjoy life, centering around family and friends. Also the
Korean culture is unique in its being the meeting point of diverse
religions. Koreans adhere to various faiths with great fervor and yet
do not conflict over religion. The strong Korean tradition of filial
piety and patriotism have kept the nation united over the centuries.

With that being said, I would like to move on to state that Reverend
Moon is not a Korean. Through the power of true love,-through his
unchanging dedication to the salvation of the world ever since he was
sixteen, Reverend Moon speaks from beyond his cultural origins, with
an absolutely God-centered love for all people no matter what race,
nation or religion. When meeting him, one knows that one is meeting a
universal man, a man for all seasons, a contemporary "renaissance
man." By what power has Reverend Moon achieved this? No power other
than true love.

I invite you to delve seriously and thoughtfully into the pages of
this book. You will encounter a man of amazing breadth of faith and
thought, profound and simple, ageless and childlike, sophisticated and
homespun. He speaks of the bedroom and of world affairs with equal
elan, connecting them, as they are indeed connected in human
existence. You will be fascinated, challenged, surprised and, most of
all, inspired with a new level of understanding the heart of God, and
what the relationship of man and God is all about.

It is our heartfelt yearning that all people could read Reverend
Moon's words in the original Korean. Until then, however, we receive
partial content, an inadequate representation of Reverend Moon's
message. This book is removed from its source by an interpreter,
translator and editor. To receive the internal heart of the words, the
reader is encouraged to apply him or herself with a pure, prayerful
attitude.

I extend my thanks and commendations to those responsible for the
compilation of this book: Dr. Tyler Hendricks, Jonathan Gullery, Annie
Iparraguirre, Suzanne Inglis, Kaye Allen and Richard Ramras. I pray
that you the reader may discover that the true love spoken of and
written of is a mere reflection of that greater reality: true love in
our own lives, coming from God. With this true love -- which is your
own to know completely -- let us continue forward to the rapid estab-
lishment of the Kingdom of God on this earth.

Reverend James A. Baughman
President, Unification Church of America
New York City
Children's Day, 1989